Enlarge ImageASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTOCaptain Eric Staal and the Hurricanes have made the playoffs only once since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006. The team reached the Cup Finals in 2002, losing in five games to the Red Wings.

The prospect of playing in a new division with five playoff qualifiers from 2013 doesn’t seem so daunting for the Blue Jackets, who have spent their existence in the former incarnation of the Central Division with the likes of Chicago, Detroit, Nashville and St. Louis.

The Carolina Hurricanes, by contrast, might be wise to steel themselves. Their former division, the Southleast, er, Southeast, likely will seem a far more hospitable place than their new Metropolitan home.

Carolina played in what was roundly considered the NHL’s weakest division for 14 of 15 seasons since the franchise moved from Hartford, Conn., in 1997.

The Southeast never produced more than two playoff qualifiers in a season during its existence. The previous incarnation of the Atlantic — which included five of the eight members of the new Metropolitan — never produced fewer than three.

Yet the Hurricanes, the Stanley Cup champions in 2006 and runners-up in 2002 — haven’t made the playoffs since 2009. That dry spell is tied with that of the Jackets and Calgary Flames for the fourth-longest in the NHL.

The New Jersey Devils did not reach the playoffs last season after advancing to the Stanley Cup finals in 2012. The other five teams in the new Metropolitan played in the postseason this spring.

“We know where we are in the standings this year and know what a tough division we will be joining,” Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford told the Raleigh News & Observer in March, in part to explain why the team re-signed winger Alexander Semin to a seven-year, $35 million contract.

Carolina has never been viewed as a big spender, but its owner, software titan Peter Karmanos, has opened his vaults.

The Canes traded for Pittsburgh Penguins star Jordan Staal, whose brother, Eric, is Carolina’s captain, in June 2012 and signed him to a 10-year, $60 million contract.

A month later, they locked up former Calder Trophy winner Jeff Skinner through 2019, giving him a six-year, $34 million extension.

It sent a charge through a loyal and loud fan base, helping the Hurricanes have an average crowd of 17,558 at PNC Arena last season, a team record.

Carolina, sparked by 54 goals from its top line of Eric Staal, Semin and left winger Jiri Tlusty, was leading its division and in prime position to break its postseason drought as late as mid-March. But a rash of injuries — including a sprained knee that ended the season of goaltender Cam Ward — and a 1-13-1 slide that carried into April ensured that the Canes would miss the playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons.

“This is honestly one of the first times I’ve been involved with a team not making the playoffs where you feel really optimistic about it,” coach Kirk Muller told the News & Observer after the season. “Some teams are in situations where they have to disrupt the whole nucleus. Our nucleus is good. We just have to make the right decisions in the summer.”

The Hurricanes have a core of talented forwards — the Staals, Semin, Skinner and Tuomo Ruutu — signed through at least the 2015-16 season. All will make between $4.75 million and $8.25 million next season. The priority, beyond improving a power play and penalty kill that were among the league’s worst, is shoring up a defense that allowed an average of 3.31 goals and ranked 29th in the NHL.

On draft day last month, Rutherford — the second-longest tenured NHL general manager behind New Jersey’s Lou Lamoriello — traded defenseman Jamie McBain and a second-round pick to Buffalo for defenseman Andrej Sekera.

The Hurricanes also signed free-agent defenseman Mike Komisarek, and they envision Sekera among their top four defensemen. They are confident that their first-round pick (fifth overall), center Elias Lindholm, could contend for a roster spot in training camp.

But Carolina might need to do far more to compete with the likes of the Penguins, New York Rangers and Devils.

Player you can admire: Eric Staal. Ten seasons, 268 goals and 627 points, all with the small-market Hurricanes.

Player you can hate: Semin. He left the Washington Capitals in ugly fashion after seven stormy seasons, though this enigmatic Russian signed a long-term deal in March and seems to have settled peaceably in North Carolina.

Cannon Fodder Podcast

Cannon Fodder is the podcast from The Dispatch sports team covering the Blue Jackets. Tune in for lively discussions about the ta and the rest of the NHL. Subscribe to the show through its RSS feed or iTunes.

Commentary from the Dispatch

Columnist Michael Arace shares his thoughts on the Blue Jackets and the NHL.